Don’t try to teach cyclists; ticket them

I’ve been following the articles on bicycle-related collisions and traffic incidents (“Educate drivers, not bicyclists,” Nov. 23).

Every morning, without fail, I see bicyclists blowing through the stop signs at Kenneth and Magnolia. They’re brazen. They don’t care if there’s a car in the intersection or pedestrians in the crosswalk. They’re too busy playing “Tour de France” to be courteous and law abiding.

If I have the bad manners to honk or yell at them, I get a fast-flung bird.

So spend $100,000 to fund safety classes? It’s the latest prime example of well-meaning but misguided, Pollyannish idealism.

Classes are a waste of that grant. The money would be better spent funding a squad of motor officers to police nothing but bicyclists. Let these “Le Mans wannabes” get schooled on the street. The fine for blowing through a stop sign, a red light or failing to yield the right-of-way is the same for motorists and bicyclists.

Aggressive enforcement of the traffic laws and helmet laws will teach these bicycle scofflaws a more lasting lesson than any safety class. Here’s an alternate idea for the “safety class”: ticket these danger junkies, fine them and require that they attend mandatory traffic safety school.

Jack Merica

Burbank